Never Forget
by Nightstorm7
Summary: Arthur Radley is charged with kidnapping. Atticus takes the case. Second chapter in! read
1. Default Chapter

_Disclaimer: I do not own any of the original Harper Lee characters_

**A/N: PLEASE READ AND REVIEW! Hope u like it!**

**NEVER FORGET**

"Scout! Scout get over here!" I sighed and looked up from my schoolwork.

"What Jem?"

"C'mover 'n' look ay this." I sighed and set down my books. I walked over to my brother. He was staring out the window, over towards the Radley place.

"Aw, shucks Jem, I thought we were gonna stop spyin' on Bo- I mean Mr. Arthur."

"No, look!" I looked harder. Then I saw it and gasped. Two men were standing on the front porch.

"Who…"

"That there's Judge Taylor 'n' Heck Tate!" Uh-oh. Mr. Tate was the sheriff of Maycomb…what was going on? I raced outside with Jem. Atticus was comin' home now.

"Atticus!" I yelled. He got out of his car, grim-faced.

"Hush, Scout. Jem, you take you're sister inside, now." Jem shook his head.

"No sir. I wanna know what all's going on at the Radley place."

"You two get in that house!"

"Come on in!" shouted Calpurnia. I rolled my eyes. What was going on now?

Maycomb county was a quiet town, and in all the twelve years of my life, the only major concern I'd heard of was Tom Robinson's trial. That seemed like years ago.

It was spring, and with school ending, I was eagerly awaiting Dill's arrival. He didn't want to marry me anymore, but we were still good friends. Jem still treated me like the baby, and I guess Atticus still thought of Jem as the "second in command." I was convinced I could look out for myself.

"C'mon Scout!"

"What?" Calupurnia had shooed us off to our rooms. I looked into Jem's room and saw him opening the window. "Watcha doin' that for Jem?"

"I'm gonna sneak out, and if you're not chicken, you c'n come to." I nodded and followed by brother out the window.

We took the same rout we always had when we used to spy on Boo Radley. We slithered under the fence and ran the back porch. I decided to hide behind the trash barrel, and to my delight, Jem seemed to think it was a good idea. He crept up behind me. I opened my mouth to say something, but quieted me.

"Shhh! Listen."

"...yeah I know that he never leaves the house, but there ain't proof of that." That was Mr. Heck Tate speaking.

"Nathan, look, if he's innocent, the jury'll let him off," I heard Judge Taylor say boredly.

"OH YEAH?" Nathan Radley exploded. "WHAT ABOUT TOM ROBINSON'S CASE?" He took a minute to calm down. "He was innocent," he said, more calmly, "don't deny it. You all knew it. I'm gonna tell you one thing. There is no justice in Maycomb." With that, he slammed the door. Atticus sighed.

"I'll take the case." Judge Taylor nodded.

"C'mon Jem! We gotta get back afore Atticus misses us!" I raced back to the house. We climbed back through the window. I grabbed a book out of the shelf, and made it look as though I had been reading. I heard Jem do the same.  
Atticus came in and spoke to Calpurnia tiredly. I ran in. Doing my best to try not to show I already knew almost everything, I shouted.

"Atticus what happened?" He sighed.

"Mr. Arthur Radley is charged with kidnapping." Jem, who had been listening in the doorway, gasped.

"What Jem?" he shook his head and went back into his room. I followed him. "What? Whatsa matter? You heard Judge Taylor. Mr. Arthur will get a fair trial, 'n' Atticus'll make sure of that."

"No. Nathan Radley was right. There is no justice in Maycomb. Everyone knew Robinson was innocent. IS HE OFF THE HOOK NOW? No Scout, he's dead. He's dead because he was colored."

"Yeah." I was silent for a minute. "Wait! Mr. Arthur is white! They have nothin' against him." Jem shook his head.

"No Scout. No."

**Ok, kinda short, but this is only the beginning. Do u like it? Should I go on?**


	2. An Unsuspected Involvment

**a/n: thanks so much for the reviews! and i'm sorry this took me so long to get out...i didn't think anyone liked it.**

**special thanks --> Akaha the Goddess, rosablasinfann08 & Borgeois Sounds Swell  
thanks for your reviews!**

**okay next chapterrr...**

I sat in Atticus' old rocking chair, swinging my legs back and forth because they didn't touch the brown wood of the poorch. Jem was leaning on the railing, his face fixed in a hard expression.

"Jem?" I asked, staring at my feet.

"What, Scout," he answered in an exasperated tone.

"What's gonna happen to Mr. Radley?"

"Dunno Scout," he said distractedly. I sighed, wishing he would pay attention to me. He'd spent the last few days in his room, reading law books that he had secretly taken from Atticus' study. Jem began pacing back and forth. He had a stick in his hand that he slid along the bars under the railing so it made a clicking noise.

"Watcha frownin' at, Jem?" I asked to fill the uncomfortable silence. Jem was always frowning lately. He didn't answer me.

"Scout! Jem! C'mon inside now," Calupurnia called to us. I hopped down from the rocking chair and raced inside. Jem followed solemnly behind me.

"Stop lookin' so glum Jem," she said gently as she put his sandwich in front of him, "it's nothin' you can change."

Having lunch with Jem was worse than sitting on the porch with him. He was as silent as ever. He picked at his sandwich, never losing his dismal expression. Calupurnia tried to start a conversation, but he answered yes, no, or maybe. Or sometimes I don't know. All that you could hear in the kitchen was my chewing, and the banging of pots and pans as Calupurnia did the dishes. I finished the last of my peanut butter-and jelly sandwich and excused myself from the table.

When I got outside, I climbed up on the banister and sat down. Looking around, I saw only in her garden. Everyone was staying inside because of the heat. I wished that Dill would come soon. He was more fun than Jem. I wished that Atticus had more time at home. He, too, was stressed. The Radley case had him up to his ears in work. Jem came outside and leaned on the railing next to me. There was a long pause.

"Jem," I said finally, "Who did Boo kidnap?" Jem looked up at me sadly.

"Dill, Scout. They said he kidnapped Dill." I looked at my brother incredulously.

"What?" I asked in astonishment. He nodded and we were silent again. "But surely Dill can tell everyone that Boo didn't do it. Just wait 'till he gets here. That's all," I beamed up at Jem. What a good idea I'd had!

"Scout, Dill ain't comin' this summer." My good feelings stopped, just like somebody had blown out a candle.

"Not coming," I repeated quietly. Jem shook his head.

"See, Dill wanted to apologize for spyin' on him last year. He went up to the door when Mr. Nathan wasn't home and knocked. Mr. Arthur came to the door and invited him inside. Well, when people saw that, they thought Mr. Arthur was kidnapping Dill." I frowned in confusion.

"But that was all the way last year!"

"No, Scout," he said in a voice that I hated, the voice he used when he babied me, "Dill was already here. He came while we were in school. Then he left before we could see him."

"So," I said determinedly, "we're gonna get into that courthouse again, ain't we Jem?"

"Yup. That's the plan." He looked at me and smiled a little smile, "If they wanna put Mr. Arthur Radley in jail, they're gonna have to go through us!"


End file.
